Mindanao marked a major clean energy milestone today as the Department of Energy (DOE), together with Apolaki Seven Inc., IbVogt, and its national and local government partners, energized Phase 1 of the Tantangan Solar Power Project, a large-scale solar power facility capable of supplying clean electricity to about 68,000 households and supporting the region’s economic growth.
The project represents another significant step in the government’s commitment to expand renewable energy capacity while ensuring that economic development reaches communities beyond the country’s major urban centers.
Awarded Solar Energy Operating Contract (SEOC) No. 2023-08-689 on 19 September 2023 under the Green Energy Auction, the ground-mounted solar facility is now 97.3 percent complete and is being developed in two phases. The newly energized Phase 1 delivers 74.5 MWp, while full project completion is targeted by October 2026 with a total installed capacity of 99 MWp, complemented with a Battery Energy Storage System that can deliver 4 MW of reliable power, and can store 16 MWh of energy, to enhance solar plant’s performance and deliver excess energy during peak hours.
Once fully operational, the Tantangan Solar Power Project is expected to generate 163 gigawatt-hours of clean electricity annually while avoiding around 113,950 metric tons of carbon emissions each year. Beyond its environmental benefits, the project creates employment opportunities during construction and operations, develops local technical expertise, stimulates economic activity, and demonstrates Sultan Kudarat’s growing role as an emerging destination for renewable energy investments.
“By bringing utility-scale solar generation to Mindanao, this plant strengthens the reliability and diversity of the island’s power supply. Amid the Middle East conflict, we are on a mission to reduce the Philippines’ dependence on imported sources and generate our own electricity. Projects, such as this, strengthen our energy security. It sends a clear message: Mindanao is ready to lead in our country’s clean energy transition,” said Energy Secretary Sharon S. Garin.
Secretary Garin likewise recognized the strong collaboration among the project’s partners, emphasizing that milestones of this scale are only possible through sustained cooperation between government, industry, local government units, and host communities.
“I would like to commend Apolaki Seven and IbVogt for building a power plant that answered the call of the Green Energy Auction Program or GEAP. This is a program the DOE designed to attract private sector investment in large-scale renewable energy. Today, this project stands as proof that our program works. This is what happens when government creates the right policy environment and the private sector steps up with capital, vision, and execution. This is how we scale the energy transition across our archipelago,” she added.
The Tantangan Solar Power Project further reinforces the country’s renewable energy momentum following the Philippines’ achievement of more than 25 percent renewable energy share in the national power generation mix. It also advances the country’s renewable energy targets of 35 percent by 2030 and 50 percent by 2040, in line with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s directive to build a secure, self-reliant, and sustainable energy sector.
As more renewable energy projects move from development to operation, the DOE continues to strengthen investor confidence in the Philippines while delivering tangible benefits to Filipino communities.
